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Clinical usefulness of acid steatocrit in pediatric practice
W R Catapani1, A N da Silva, M B de Morais
1Division of Pediatric Gastroenterology, Federal University of São Paulo (UNIFESP), Brazil.
Insights
The acid steatocrit test offers improved sensitivity for detecting steatorrhea in children compared to the classical method. This enhanced technique aids in ruling out fat malabsorption, reducing the need for more complex diagnostic procedures.
Area of Science:
- Clinical Chemistry
- Pediatric Gastroenterology
- Diagnostic Techniques
Background:
- The steatocrit technique is a common method for monitoring malabsorption syndromes.
- An improved acid steatocrit method demonstrates better correlation with fecal fat concentration than the classical test.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess the clinical utility of the acid steatocrit method in evaluating pediatric steatorrhea.
- To compare the diagnostic performance of the acid steatocrit against the traditional steatocrit technique and fecal fat balance.
Main Methods:
- A modified acid steatocrit method using hydrochloric acid was employed.
- Children referred for steatorrhea evaluation were studied.
- The fecal fat balance was used as the gold standard for comparison.
Main Results:
- The acid steatocrit achieved a sensitivity of 88.8% at a 1.6% cut-off value.
- The classical steatocrit method showed a sensitivity of 66.7% at the same cut-off.
- The acid steatocrit demonstrated superior performance in identifying steatorrhea.
Conclusions:
- The acid steatocrit method is a valuable tool for ruling out steatorrhea in children.
- This technique can help identify children who do not require more extensive diagnostic methods like fecal fat balance.
Abstract:
The steatocrit technique has been frequently used in the follow up of malabsorption syndromes. The classical steatocrit method has recently been improved by adding perchloric acid to the fecal homogenate (acid steatocrit), this technique showed a better correlation with fecal fat concentration than the classical test. In our protocol, we aimed at an assessment of the clinical usefulness of the acid steatocrit when compared to the traditional technique. Children who were referred to the laboratory for evaluation of steatorrhea were studied by the fecal fat balance, which was taken as a gold standard method for the comparison between both steatocrits. The method was slightly modified, by using hydrochloric instead of perchloric acid. Our results showed a sensitivity of 88.8% for the acid steatocrit and 66.7% for the classical method, at a 1.6% cut off value. We suggest the method as useful to rule out steatorrhea, thus selecting those children who should not be submitted to more laborious and time consuming methods such as the fecal fat balance.